There is an increasing need for real-time processing. (As used herein, the term “real-time” is also intended to refer to near real-time and substantially real-time.) This need is well illustrated in the telecommunications sector where real-time services are ubiquitous. The classic example of a real-time service is traditional voice telephony services, however, as portable wireless communication devices become more powerful, demand is arising for streaming video, audio and other real-time services.
In telecommunications, concurrent with the demand for real-time services is the demand for real-time billing, which is particularly important in the case of pre-paid services, although is also relevant to post-paid services. Invocation and performance of a real-time service must also take place concurrent with real-time management of a subscriber's balance. Accordingly, improvements are needed to current data queuing techniques to satisfy such demand, or at least improve satisfaction of such demand.